The pendulum has swung back the other way now, a predictable result considering the daunting schedule.

St. John’s had won three straight games, including an upset of No. 18 Butler, but then came contests against 10th-ranked Creighton and a visit to No. 16 Xavier, and what followed was expected regression, a pair of lopsided losses to almost-certain NCAA Tournament teams.

“We’re balancing building and trying to win at the same time,” St. John’s coach Chris Mullin said. “I’m [aware] these guys are young and inexperienced, but I don’t want to use that as an excuse to not compete and try to win.”

Another opportunity awaits Monday night in the nation’s capital when St. John’s (8-9, 2-2 Big East) visits Georgetown, which is actually in worse shape at the moment. The Hoyas (8-8, 0-4) have yet to win a Big East game, and will likely miss the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years for the first time since 2004-05.

But the Red Storm haven’t won at Georgetown since Jan. 18, 2003, a span of 11 straight losses, and were routed by the Hoyas in two meetings a year ago, by a combined 45 points.

It will start on the defensive end, where St. John’s was shaky in the two recent losses. In the 97-82 setback to Xavier on Saturday, the Musketeers shot 58 percent from the field and blitzed the Johnnies from beyond the 3-point line in the first half, making 7-of-12 attempts. It wasted a career-high 32 points from freshman guard Marcus LoVett Jr.

“We were very soft. Defensively, we were porous,” Mullin said. “Basically, we let them do whatever they wanted to do. We scored 82 points, but the game was basically over. We’re not going to have a problem scoring. We have scorers and we know that. We have to put our imprint on the game as a group and individually, and that didn’t happen.

“In the first half, we shot 34 percent, so when you begin games like that you’re not playing with the intensity and aggressiveness on the defensive end.”

Mullin believes it is the result of dependency on young players, asking so much from freshmen such as LoVett and Shamorie Ponds and sophomores Malik Ellison, Federico Mussini, Kassoum Yakwe and Tariq Owens. One game, they can beat Butler, the next they only play 20 strong minutes.

Consistency has eluded St. John’s so far.

“We need experience. We need these games. They are going to pay off for us long-term and I know that,” Mullin said. “On some given nights, we’re able to play with anybody and some nights we struggle. That shows our inconsistency and youth.”